After learning everything in her life was a lie, warriors Mara and Dalin are the only hope for the Laskan Commonwealth of Planets-and for each other. FOR THE PEOPLE After discovering her true identity as a daughter of the Tree, and also the horrible fact that the war she'd been fighting was nothing more than a staged practice dreamt up by a maniacal queen, young Mara reunites with her long-lost family. Laska holds new perils, and the "normal world" is anything but. She and the only person she can trust-her beloved Dalin-must fight on. Their first step is infiltration of The Queen's Mess, an infamous royal military academy where students die as a matter of course. Then they'll be separated. She and Dalin, with swords, fists, and every weapon at their disposal, have pledged their lives to their quest-and to each other. When they come back together, nothing will be the same.